Carphone to bundle Ability Office and Panda

Formjet has signed a deal with Carphone Warehouse to preload its Ability Office and Panda antivirus software on netbooks and laptops bundled with mobile broadband.

The deal will see approximately 100,000 laptops and netbooks come bundled with 30-day trial versions of the software packages. Customers will also have the chance to upgrade the software to the full version.

Formjet believes that the opportunity presents itself as the ideal opportunity, not just to boost sales of Ability Office, but also provide a service that is genuinely needed.

"If a user is getting it for free then they don’t expect to pay a fortune to get Office applications," commented group sales and development director at ASI, David Hennell to Microscope.

He added that the move reflected the growing importance of Carphone Warehouse to consumer electronics and PC retailing. His comments come xxx weeks after the retailer claimed it now accounted for ten per cent of the marketplace.

Hennell was also keen to stress that the firm wasn't favouring multiples over its existing independent partners; referring to the deal it has with Micro P to supply its software through the distributor that allows retailers to bundle its software with netbooks and laptops.